Method and System for Unusual Usage Reporting

ABSTRACT

Illustrative embodiments of the present invention are directed to methods and computer systems for reporting unusual or anomalous usage or spending of a commodity by consumers. A computer system retrieves a set of usage-information datasets corresponding to a set of consumers, each dataset including past usage of the commodity during at least one of a completed billing period and a current usage of the commodity during the current billing period. The computer system establishes a set of report-trigger conditions for the current billing period, each of the report-trigger conditions corresponding to a consumer. The computer system monitor usage or spending of the set of consumers to determine, for each consumer, whether an estimated usage established for each consumer fulfills the consumer&#39;s report-trigger condition. Once the report-trigger condition is fulfilled, the computer system outputs a report to the consumer.

RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims priority from Provisional Application No.61/665,189, filed Jun. 27, 2012 and Provisional Application No.61/722,334, filed Nov. 5, 2012. These applications are incorporatedherein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to commodity-use reporting, moreparticularly to the reporting of consumer's commodity usage.

SUMMARY OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In accordance with illustrative embodiments, a computer-implementedmethod is provided for reducing a usage or cost of a commodity byreporting to consumers of their unusual usage of the commodity during acurrent billing period. The computer system retrieves a set ofusage-information datasets corresponding to a set of consumers. Eachdataset may include a) past usage of the commodity during at least oneof a completed billing period that may correspond to a period of similarseasonality as the current billing period and b) a current usage of thecommodity during a completed portion of the current billing period. Thecommodity refers to a utility-based commodity, such as electricity,water, gas, or an aggregation of several resources, such as totalenergy.

The computer system establishes a set of report-trigger conditions for aset of consumers for the current billing period, each of thereport-trigger conditions corresponding to a consumer. In the variousembodiments, the computer system may establish the report-triggercondition once for each billing period, such as at the start of thecurrent billing period or before. The report-trigger condition mayinclude at least one unusual usage condition and at least one permissivecondition. An unusual usage condition may be defined as an estimatedusage for the current bill period exceeding a specified percentage of abaseline defined based on the past usage. This specified percentage maybe between 100 percent and 150 percent. An unusual usage condition mayalso be defined as an estimated usage for a remaining portion of currentbilling period exceeding a usage threshold defined by the past usagescaled by the specified percentage. Unusual usage conditions may furtherbe defined in terms of an expected cost or an environmental impact. Apermissive condition may include a) the consumer's consent to receivethe report, b) the report being the first to be sent within the billingperiod, and c) the unusual condition occurring in an actionable windowduring the billing period. This actionable window maybe during portionsof the billing period that the user may act to curb their usage. Forexample, in a four-week billing period, the actionable window mayinclude the second and third week of that period.

The computer system may continuously or intermittently monitor usage orspending of the set of consumers to determine, for each consumer,whether their estimated usage, established for each consumer, fulfillstheir respective consumer's report-trigger condition. The computersystem may determine the estimated usage based on a) usage for thecompleted portion of the current billing period and b) a forecast of theusage for the remaining portion of the current billing period. Theforecast may be based upon a moving or trailing history window that mayvary between a five-day and ten-day period.

Upon the estimated usage fulfilling the report-trigger condition for arespective consumer, the computer system outputs a report to theconsumer. The report may include generating an electronic message oroutputting a signal to an intermediary service that sends the report tothe consumer. The computer system may transmit, or cause thetransmission of, the report to a receiving consumer as an electronicmessage, such as short message services (SMS), automated voice-messagingservice, and electronic mail (“e-mail”). Alternatively, the computersystem may transmit, or cause the transmission of, electronic signals toelectronic devices located at a consumer's premises to be displayed orrelayed and then displayed to the consumer. These electronic devices mayinclude thermostats or a utility meters that communicate with a deviceoperating as a user portal at the premises. The report may include theunusual usage of the commodity such as unusual high cost, unexpectedcosts, high usage, or higher than expected environmental impact and/orcarbon footprint.

In accordance with other embodiments of the invention, thecomputer-implemented method may detect an unusual usage by the consumerof the commodity, where the measured usage takes into account cost. Themethod may include retrieving a set of usage-information datasets whereeach of the dataset may correspond to the usage of the commodity by aconsumer. The computer system may retrieve a cost-rate dataset for thecurrent billing period, which may be price-tiers or time-of-use pricing.The computer system may establish a set of report-trigger conditions fora set of consumers for the current billing period where each of thereport-trigger condition corresponds to a respective consumer. Thereport-trigger condition may be derived from the past usage data and thepricing data. The report-trigger condition may include a usage-triggercondition and a cost-trigger condition. The computer system maydetermine, for each consumer, whether an estimated cost that has beenestablished for the respective consumer for that current billing periodfulfills the cost-trigger condition, e.g., the estimated cost exceeds anunusual cost setpoint. The computer system may also determine whether anestimated usage established for the same consumer has also been exceeded(i.e., a usage-trigger condition). The computer system may output orcause to output a report to the consumer if both the usage-trigger andthe cost-trigger conditions are fulfilled.

The described method may be employed as a computer program product,which is stored on a machine-readable medium, or computer data signal,embodied by an electromagnetic wave, comprising program code to beexecuted, particularly, in a computer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing features of embodiments will be more readily understood byreferences to the following detailed description, taken with referenceto the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating a computer-implemented method ofreducing a usage or cost of a commodity by reporting to a consumer of anunusual usage of the commodity according to the illustrative embodiment.

FIG. 2A shows a plot of a daily usage of electricity for a givenconsumer over a given year.

FIG. 2B shows the usage of FIG. 2A cumulated for each billing cycle.

FIG. 3 is a diagram of report-trigger conditions according to theillustrative embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of report-trigger conditions according to analternate embodiment.

FIG. 5 illustrates aspects of forecasting of the consumer's usage forthe remaining portion of the current billing period.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an operational aspect of theembodiments to determine, for each consumer, whether an estimated usagethat has been established for the respective consumer for that currentbilling period fulfills the report-trigger condition.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a computer-implemented method of reducing ausage or cost of a commodity by reporting to a consumer of unusual costaccording to an alternate embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of a system according to the illustrativeembodiment.

FIG. 9 shows a flowchart of a computer-implemented method according toan alternate embodiment.

FIG. 10 shows embodiment according to the described illustrativeembodiment.

FIG. 11 illustrates a plot of a distribution of customers having usagesexceeding their historical averages.

FIG. 12 illustrates an electronic mail report according to anillustrative embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS

Providing an alert of unusual or anomalous utility usage allowsconsumers to manage their finances while promoting conservation.Consumers may set thresholds of when an alert or report would be sent.However, the thresholds by themselves are insufficient in curbingconsumers' spending behavior. For example, the threshold may trigger analert or report that may be late. When a significant portion of thebilling period remains, the consumers may need to continue to spend oruse the commodity. Consumers may set a lower threshold in order toreceive an earlier warning. However, in order to do so, the consumerswould have to understand their usage patterns to set the propersetpoint. Further compounding this problem is the variability in theconsumers' usage patterns and the effects from seasonality.

Illustrative embodiments are directed to computer-implemented methodsand systems for reporting unusual or anomalous usage of a commodity byconsumers. In various illustrative embodiments, a report is provided tothe consumers or to a utility or report service provider to relay to theconsumers. The report may be electronic or may be generated as aphysical hard copy that is mailed to the consumers. Illustrativeembodiments further define usage patterns that constitute as beingunusual while accounting for seasonality and allowing for the earlierdetection of certain usage to curb the consumers' usage or spending.

As used herein, the term “report” generally refers to a signal thatresults in a visual or an audible indication. Report also refers to thetransmission of a signal that results in the giving of such anindication.

The term “usage” refers to a quantity of use, a cost associated with theuse, or a quantified metric representing the use or cost, such asenvironmental impact.

The term “commodity” refers to a utility-based commodity, such aselectricity, water, and natural gas, which are consumable finiteresources delivered to a fixed structure. Commodity also refers anaggregation of such resources, such as total energy.

FIG. 1 is a schematic flowchart illustrating a computer-implementedmethod 100 of reducing a usage or cost of a commodity by reporting to aconsumer of an unusual usage of the commodity according to theillustrative embodiment. The operation is performed during and for acurrent billing period. Typically, a utility company bills a consumer atthe end of a usage period. As such, the current billing period refers tothe time in which the consumer is consuming the commodity to be billed.

The method includes a computer system retrieving 102 a set ofusage-information datasets, each corresponding to the usage of thecommodity by a set of consumers. For example, the usage-informationdataset may include a) past usage of the commodity for a completedbilling period and b) a current usage of the commodity during acompleted portion of the current billing period.

The computer system may retrieve past usage data from a consumer's oldutility bills. These old utility bills may be referred herein ascompleted billing periods. These bills may be stored in a databaseoperated by the utility, by an archival provider, or by a serviceprovider that sends the unusual usage report to the consumer. Past usagedata may also be stored-meter readings that correspond to consumption ofthe commodity by the consumer.

The current usage of the commodity refers to the most recent, i.e., thelast reading (or the last series of readings), from a usage monitoringdevice (i.e., a utility meter). Current usage may be referred intemporal terms, such as being within the last hour or day. The meterreading may be performed by a utility company or an independent serviceprovider that provides the meter reading to the utility.

The computer system may perform this monitoring operation at a definedschedule during the billing period, such as at every hour, fractions ofthe hour or day, daily, or weekly. Alternatively, the computer systemmay perform this monitoring operation at specified events, such as whennew usage data is retrieved from the meter or made available from autility database. The computer system may also perform the monitoroperation at a specified portion of the current billing period, such asduring the middle of the billing period.

In the various embodiments, the computer system may retrieve currentusage data from a database. The current usage data may be a meterreading, but may also be other usage collection device on the premises,such thermostats, sub-meters, and energy management systems.

Past usage for a consumer may also be derived from other consumers. Ininstances where a consumer has a limited usage history, such as at thebeginning of a new service with the utility company, the computer systemmay use historical usage data of other consumers that have similar homecharacteristics to form the past usage for this new consumer. These homecharacteristics may include information, such as size of the premises(in square feet), number of occupants, general age of the premises,dwelling type, presence of a pool, meter reading cycle, distance fromeach other, and geographic location. In such embodiments, the computersystem may analyze datasets of multiple consumers having several or allof these characteristics. Alternatively, the utility company may haveestimates of past usage based on geographic location. These estimatesmay also serve as past usage data for new consumers.

Generally, a premises is equipped with a meter to monitor the usage ofthe commodity at the premises. A utility company providing the commodityto the premises typically performs a read of the meter in each billingcycle, typically on a monthly basis. FIG. 2A shows a sample plot of adaily usage 202 of electricity for a given consumer over a given year.FIG. 2B shows the usage of FIG. 2A cumulated for each billing cycle 206.The current usage 208 of the present billing period 210 may be referredto as the current usage of the commodity during a completed portion ofthe current billing period.

The computer system may establish 104 a report-trigger condition for thecurrent billing period at the beginning or before the period, preferablybefore the beginning of the period. Alternatively, the report-triggercondition may be established during the current billing period, such asimmediately before the report-trigger condition is used in themonitoring for unusual usage. This report-trigger condition is based atleast in part from the past usage in the usage-information dataset.

FIG. 3 is a diagram of report-trigger conditions according to theillustrative embodiment. The report-trigger condition 302 may include aset of conditions, such as triggering conditions as well as permissiveconditions. A triggering condition refers to the unusual or anomalouscondition to be monitored. More than one triggering conditions may be ina report-trigger condition. For example, a triggering condition may bebased upon usage, cost, and/or environmental impact. The triggeringconditions may be independently employed or in combinations. Atriggering condition 304 based on usage may be defined by Eqn. 1, wherethe triggering condition is the actual usage of the commodity, U^(i)_(actual), exceeding the unusual usage profile, U^(i) _(unusual), at“time i.”

Triggering condition=U ^(i) _(actual) >U ^(i) _(unusual)  (Eqn. 1)

The actual usage, U^(i) _(actual), of the commodity generally refers toa meter reading or a usage reading. The variable “time i” refers toinstances of time during the current billing period. It may be expressedin synchronous intervals, such as by minutes, tenth of an hour, quarterof an hour, hours, or days. For example, “time i” may be in 15-minuteincrements. Alternatively, the variable “time i” may be asynchronouslyacquired. It may, for example, be expressed in terms of eventidentifiers, such as when the meter or usage is read.

The unusual usage profile is the triggering condition that defines anunusual usage. It may be defined by Eqn. 2, where the profile is abaseline historical usage, U_(historical), scaled by a thresholdpercentage, T_(percentage). The historical usage, U_(historical) servesas a baseline. The profile may be linear over the number of days in thebilling period, N.

$\begin{matrix}{U_{unusual}^{i} = \frac{U_{historical} \times T_{percentage}}{N}} & \left( {{Eqn}.\mspace{14mu} 2} \right)\end{matrix}$

Threshold percentage is referred herein as the pre-defined threshold.The threshold percentage is preferable established around 130 percent.However it may vary between 100 percent and 200 percent. The consumermay receive recommendations of the setpoint to use and how it maycorrespond to various conservation efforts. FIG. 11 illustrates a plot1100 of a distribution of customers having usages exceeding theirhistorical averages. In the x-axis 1102, a percent of usage exceedingthe historical averages is shown. Here, the data is analyzed between 0%and 200%. The percent of usage exceeding the historical averages refersto the threshold percentage. In the y-axis 1104, a percent of customerhaving a bill in a billing period that exceeds the threshold percentageis shown. As such, for a given threshold percentage, the computer systemmay determine the percentage of customers who may receive an alert. Thehistorical average may be based on the customer's own usage history andmay be compared based on the bill period (e.g., same month). Here, at athreshold percentage of 140%, approximately 15% of the customers have atleast one bill that exceeds this threshold.

Alternatively, the T_(percentage) value may be established such thatfewer than three alerts are expected to be sent on average to eachconsumer. The T_(percentage) value may also be established to maximizethe number of consumers that would receive a report. For example, thethreshold may be established by using a set of historical customer usagedata for a given utility and determining the distribution of alertoccurrences for different threshold levels. The distribution may beanalyzed using a histogram. The T_(percentage) value may be thethreshold level with the maximum number of customers receiving at leastone alert. The analysis may be performed across several seasons toreduce seasonal variability.

The baseline historical usage, U_(historical), may be derived from pastusage during similar seasonality. In the various embodiments, the pastusage may correspond to usage from one year ago. The past usage data maybe an average for the same month across different years.

The triggering condition 306 may include unusual or anomalous cost. Eqn.3 defines such a triggering condition where the actual cost of thecommodity, C^(i) _(actual), exceeds the unusual cost profile, C^(i)_(unusual), at “time i.”

Triggering condition=C ^(i) _(actual) >C ^(i) _(unusal)  (Eqn. 3)

The unusual cost profile, C^(i) _(unusual), may be defined by Eqn. 4,where the profile is a baseline historical cost, C_(historical), scaledby a threshold percentage, T_(percentage). The profile may be linearover the number of days in the billing period, N.

$\begin{matrix}{C_{unusual}^{i} = \frac{C_{historical} \times T_{percentage}}{N}} & \left( {{Eqn}.\mspace{14mu} 4} \right)\end{matrix}$

Additionally, a consumer may personalize his or her threshold byproviding a preference on the frequency of the alert. As a result,rather than an input of the threshold percentage, the system may provideoptions for a desired alert frequency, such as “normal”, “morefrequent”, or “less frequent”. Then based upon the selected desiredalert frequency, the computer system may adjust a personalized thresholdpercentage T_(percentage) _(—) _(customer) _(—) _(x) for a givencustomer. For a normal alert frequency, the computer system maydetermine a T_(percentage) value that would provide, for example, atleast three alerts in a year. As such, a “more frequent” alert selectionmay correspond to a T_(percentage) value that would provide anadditional alert (e.g., four alerts). And a “less frequent” alertselection may correspond to a T_(percentage) value that would providefewer alerts (e.g., two alerts).

FIG. 4 is a diagram of report-trigger conditions according to analternate embodiment. The trigger condition for unusual cost may includeboth the cost and usage baseline exceeding a threshold. For example, thecurrent billing period is May of Year 1. In May of Year 0, a consumerspent $100 for 100 kWh of electricity. For a threshold percentage of 130percent, the triggering threshold may be established at $130 and 130kWh. In this embodiment, for the triggering condition to be fulfilled,the estimated cost for the end of May would have to exceed $130 and that130 kWh would have been used. Since the condition is based upon cost andusage, the system avoids reporting due merely to price fluctuations ofthe commodity. It should be appreciated by those skilled in art thatdiffering threshold percentage values may be applied for cost and usage.

Alternatively, the unusual cost may be expressed in term of a change toenvironmental impact. Environmental impact may include, for example,carbon foot-print (shown in tons of carbon).

Environmental impact may also be expressed in terms of equivalents toother environmental quantities, for example, the number of miles driven,etc. Consumers may not understand their environmental impact based uponthe tonnage of carbon that they generated, thus, the report may bealternatively expressed in relation to a more tangible reference. Forexample, the report may say that “the energy required to heat and/or tocool the home is equivalent to the consumer driving X number of miles.”The report may also be expressed in a manner to promote conservation.For example, where the consumer has exceeded his or her usage, thereport may suggest that the consumer should drive a certain number ofmiles in order to offset the environmental impact of the extra energyused to heat and/or cool the home.

The environmental benefits or impacts may be calculated using datastored in a look-up-table and applied to the cost and/or usageinformation. The computer system may use environmental benefitsinformation as published by various government entities or other similardatabases.

Referring back to FIG. 3, the report-trigger condition 302 may includepermissive conditions, such as whether a consumer has given consent toreceive the report 308 and whether the report will be the first reportsent to the consumer during the current billing period 310. Permissiveconditions may be referred to as eligibility conditions. Permissiveconditions may promote the consumer's experience of receiving thereports. For example, in instances where the consumer did not provideconsent to receive the report; the receipt of the report may causeconfusion. Similarly, overly alerting the consumer may also result inthe consumer ignoring the report. Other permissive condition may includethe consumer being a residential consumer.

Another permissive condition may include whether the unusual usage isdetected in the middle of the billing period 312. For example, in afour-week billing period, a two-week monitoring window may be employedas a permissive or eligibility condition.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the method may determine 106 an estimatedusage for the current billing period for the remaining portion of thecurrent billing period and determine 108 whether the estimated usagefulfills the report-trigger condition. Upon the report-trigger conditionbeing fulfilled, the method includes outputting 110 a report.

FIG. 5 illustrates aspect of forecasting the consumer's usage for theremaining portion of the current billing period. In various embodiments,the forecast of the consumer's usage for the remaining portion 502 ofthe current billing period may be based upon a trailing history 504 inthe completed portion of the current billing period. The beginning 506of the current billing period starts on Day 1 of the billing period. Inthis scenario, the current day 512 is Day 15. The remaining portion 502of the current billing period is the remaining 16 days (Days 16-31) in abilling period of 31 days. When the trailing history 504 is longer thanthe completed portion of the current billing period, data from theprevious completed billing period may be used. For example, at Day 2 ofthe May, the trailing history window may include Day 1 of May as well asthe last six days of April.

In the various embodiments, the trailing history data 508 may beduplicated to serve as the forecast 510 for the remaining portion of thecurrent billing period. Where the remaining portion 502 of the currentbilling period is longer than the trailing history 504, the trailinghistory data 508 may be duplicated multiple times to generate forecastdata 516 and an end-of-the-forecast data 518. The end-of-the-forecastdata 518 may be shorter than the forecast data 516 depending on thelength of the remaining portion 502 of the current billing period. Theforecast data 516 may be duplicated as a mirror of (i.e., reversed from)the trailing history data 508. This scheme provides more weight to themost recent usage data among the trailing history data 508, because theend-of-the-forecast data 518 is based on the most recent data from thetrailing history data 508. Alternatively, the forecast data 516 maymerely be duplicated in the same sequence as the trailing history data508. Where the report explains the forecasting method to the consumer,this approach may be more easily understood by consumers.

In an embodiment, the trailing window data 508 may also be averaged toprovide an average rate of usage. The average rate of usage may then beused to extrapolate the forecast usage for the remaining portion 502 ofthe current billing period.

The inventors of the present invention discovered that a seven-day toten-day trailing window provides a reasonable usage estimation of theconsumer's usage trend of up to a month. This window size beneficiallyaccounts for the high and low usage during a time period, while alsoremaining in the same weather period. This window is also sufficientlysmall to not be affected by seasonality effects, which may skew theforecast.

It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that longer orshorter trailing history may be employed without imparting from thedisclosed embodiments. For example, by modeling weather patterns, thecomputer system may account for weather effects beyond the seven-to-tendays trailing window.

The computer system may determine 106 whether the estimated usagefulfills the report-trigger condition at pre-defined schedules duringthe current billing period. Where communicating meters are deployed, themeter may be read at one-minute, 15-minute, hourly, or daily increments.The operation may be performed to correspond to a new meter reading.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the computer system determines 108 whether theestimated usage fulfills the report-trigger condition. FIG. 6 is adiagram illustrating an operational aspect of the embodiments todetermine, for each consumer, whether an estimated usage that has beenestablished for the respective consumer for that current billing periodfulfills the report-trigger condition. In the various embodiments, thepast usage data 602 is scaled by the T_(percentage) cen value (forexample, 130%) to establish a triggering threshold 604. In this example,at current day 512 (Day 15), the forecast usage 606 exceeds thetriggering threshold 604 at Day 18, thus fulfilling the report-triggercondition.

Alternatively, the triggering condition may be based on the forecastusage 606 exceeding the triggering threshold 608 established at the endof the billing period. As shown, an unusual usage pattern by a consumeris detected within a few days of the elevated usage beginning. As such,the consumer has time to take action to curb their usage or spending.

A component of the estimated usage may include its duration, whichestablishes the length of the billing period. In the variousembodiments, the current billing period may have a duration based on anaverage of three billing periods. Other forecast lengths may beemployed, such as a fixed length.

In operation 110, the computer system outputs a report upon thereport-trigger condition being fulfilled. The report may be formed indifferent ways. For example, it may include generating an electronicmessage, which may be an electronic mail message, a short messageservice (SMS) message, and/or an automated voice message. The report maybe sent directly to consumers via such electronic messages. The reportmay also be sent to intermediaries, such as the utility companies or aservice provider. The report may also be signals send to an electronicdevice located at a location associated with the consumer, such as ameter or a thermostat. The meter may be an advanced meter infrastructure(AMI) based meter or a meter with communication capabilities over anetwork.

The message may be personalized. The personalization provides greaterconfidence to the consumer that the information is relevant. Forexample, the personalization may include the alert type (unusual usageor cost), fuel type, as well as tips and education material to reduceusage. As a result, the likelihood of the consumer taking actionincreases.

The message may be formatted for electronic mail as shown in Table 1.

TABLE 1 Email subject: Unusual <electric/natural gas> usage Header info:Text here is the same for all cases, unless noted Text Description Introstmt You're receiving this alert to help Short term: this links toSmartSource for the user to opt-out of all emails from you keep yourbills low. Opower Unsubscribe Long term: Would be great if this couldeither link to astro or a configuration page so that you don't need toopt-out of all Opower emails (e.g. reports and unusual usage alerts)Account Acct # ******XXXX show asterisks for most digits, only showingactual last 4 digits number Alert title Unusual <electric/natural gas>This is the same as the email subject usage Budget This is not a bill:Youre on Only shown for customers on budget billing. Otherwise should beomitted. bill budget billing. statement

For short message service (SMS) message, the report may say “UTILCO:based on your recent Electric use, your projected bill is $102. Tip:Adjust the temp 3-5F to lower your bill.” The report may also say“UTILCO: Your recent Electric use is 14% higher than typical for youthis time of year. Tip: Adjust the temp 3-5F to lower your bill.”

The report may include literature to improve usage reduction. Theliterature may include tips as shown in Table 2.

TABLE 2 Electricity (summer Natural gas and winter) Impact (Summer andwinter) Impact Steps to take <same> Turn off unused lights & 1/5 Shave aminute off 1/5 devices shower time Clean or replace air 3/5 Clean orreplace air 3/5 filters monthly filters monthly Adjust your 5/5 Adjustyour thermostat 3-50 5/5 thermostat 3-50 See more ways to save <same>

The consumer may also customize the settings for the report, such as thethresholds (maximum or minimum), as well as the maximum number of alertsto be received per billing period. The consumer may also indicatepreferences on the method of delivery of the report.

FIG. 12 illustrates an electronic mail report according to anillustrative embodiment. As shown, the report includes the introductorystatement 1202, the account number 1204, the alert title 1206, and theliterature to improve usage reduction 1208.

The described method may be configured to monitor large numbers ofconsumers while distinguishing unusual usage from ordinary usage that issubject to ordinary fluctuations. In enabling consumers to manage theircommodity use, the various embodiments provide for incrementalefficiency results as well as greater consumer satisfaction.Additionally, the method may improve the user experience in ensuringthat as many people as possible receive alerts and that the alert wouldbe relevant and useful to them. This configuration may entail balancingthe frequency of reporting with the frequency of false-positivecondition when establishing the triggering threshold.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a computer-implemented method of reducing ausage or cost of a commodity by reporting to a consumer of unusual costaccording to an alternate embodiment.

A computer system may retrieve usage-information dataset correspondingto the usage of the commodity by the consumer 702, the usage-informationdataset including past usage of the commodity during at least one of acompleted billing period and a current usage of the commodity during acompleted portion of the current billing period. The computer system mayretrieve a cost-rate dataset for the current billing period 704. Thecost-rate dataset may include tiered rates as well as peak and off-peakpricing.

The computer system may establish a report-trigger condition for thecurrent billing period; the report-trigger condition being based fromthe past usage in the usage-information dataset 706. The computer systemmay determine whether an estimated cost for the current billing periodfulfills the report-trigger condition 708 and outputs a report to theconsumer 710 upon such conditions.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of a system according to the illustrativeembodiment. The system reduces a usage or cost of a commodity byreporting to a consumer of an unusual cost or spending directed to useof a commodity. The system 800 includes a memory 802, communicationports 804 a-c, and a control program 806.

The memory 802 is configured to store usage data 808 associated to acommodity. The usage data may include, in part, a usage-informationdataset corresponding to usage of the commodity by a plurality ofconsumers. The usage-information may include, in part, pastusage-information of the commodity during at least one of completedbilling period and a current usage of the commodity during a completedportion of the current billing period. The past usage data may includebill data 809. The communication port 804 c may be configured totransmit report data to a set of consumers 810, while the communicationport 804 a is configured to receive data with the utility database. Thecontrol program 806 is configured to control the memory 802 and thecommunication ports 804 a-c. The control program 806 may include aforecast module 814, a rate module 816, a monitor module 818, and areport module 820. The control program 806 may also retrieve theusage-information dataset for a consumer, via communication port 804 bthat interfaces directly to meters 812. The control program 806 mayestablish a report-trigger condition for the current billing period forthe consumer, where the report-trigger condition may be based at leastin part from the past usage in the usage-information dataset. Thecontrol program 806 may determine an estimated usage for the currentbilling period based at least, in part, on usage for the completedportion of the current billing period and a forecast of usage for aremaining portion of the current billing period. The forecast of theusage may be generated by the forecast module 814. The control program806 may continuously determine whether the estimated usage fulfills thereport-trigger condition using the monitor module 818. If the estimatedusage fulfills the report-trigger condition, the monitor module 818 maycause the report module 820 to output a report to the consumers 810through the communication port 804 c.

The communication ports 804 b may be configured to interface to a meter,a thermostat, a data exchange interface of a cellular network, and othernetworks.

It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that thecommunication ports 804 a-c may be implemented individually or incombination. For example, the communication ports may be combined to asingle internet port that interface to a local area network. The variouscommunication ports may be implemented on several servers that interfaceto the respective networks. For example, the communication port 804 bmay be a server that interfaces to utility meter. One example is agateway FTP server to interface with utilities servers to allow for thetransfer of data files. The communication port 804 c may be implementedas an exchange server, such as UUA for short message service (SMS)gateways, electronic mail (email) using simple mail transfer protocol(SMTP), as well as interactive voice response (IVR). Applicationprogramming interface (API) may, for example, be used to control IVR andSMS.

FIG. 9 shows a flowchart of a computer-implemented method according toan alternate embodiment. A computer system may establish an averagelength of billing periods for the customer 902 to determine the end ofthe current billing period. For example, the average length of the billperiods may be between 28-31 days where the current bill period ismonthly. The average length of the bill periods may be based on oldbills including the past three billing periods up to the past twelve. Ininstances where less than three old bills exist, the computer system mayuse a default value provided by the utility company. The average lengthof the billing periods may be used to filter anomalously short billingperiods, which may occur for new customers. As discussed, a bill periodmay be monthly, but other durations may be employed, including, forexample, 45-days, 60-days, and 90-days.

The computer system may retrieve a usage data for the current billingperiod 904 to establish the end date of the current billing period. Thecomputer system may retrieve the last billing usage read to determinethe start date of the current billing period and average the billingperiod to project the end date of the current billing period.

The usage data may be in the data format as shown in Table 3.

TABLE 3 Rates modeled text Not modeled text Recent data header Your lastX days <same> Recent data $XXX XXX <kWh/therms/CCF> Recent data date MmmDD-Mmm DD <same> range Link to astro: View your usage <same>

The computer system may determine the usage for the remaining days inthe billing period 906 by determining the usage to date of the currentbilling period and forecasting the remaining days in the current billingperiod. The forecasting may be based on the trailing window of the usagethat may be between seven to ten days.

The computer system may use tiered rates, or peak and off-peak pricingto determine a projected cost for the remaining portion of the billingperiod 908. The computer system may store to a database the projectedbilling period, the usage and cost to date, the forecasted usage andcost.

The computer system may compare the forecast to a baseline to determinewhether an unusual usage exists 910. The unusual usage may be defined asa baseline value, established from old bills of similar seasons,exceeding a defined threshold. If the condition is fulfilled, thecomputer system may verify the eligibility criteria to ensure thecustomer has opted in to receive the alerts, that the customer isresidential, and that the report would be sent during the middle of thebilling period 912. The unusual usage may be based on cost or usage. Ifcost is the trigger, the report may be outputted only if both the usageand cost threshold are exceeded 914. This condition would discount theeffect of price increases, rather than usage increase.

FIG. 10 shows embodiment according to the described illustrativeembodiment. The server 1002 receives data (i.e., historical and usageinformation) from the utility 1006. The server 1002 performs thecomputer-implemented method described above. If a report-triggercondition is satisfied, the server 1002 may communicate the informationto consumers associated with those buildings 1008, 1010, and 1012. Invarious embodiments, the server 1002 communicates the report, or thealert, via the communications network 1014. For example, the server 1002may send the report and/or alert in an e-mail. Alternatively, theconsumer may log into a server supporting website 1004 and view thealert or the personalized message corresponding to the report. Inaddition, the server 1002 may print the report or may provide theinformation to a printing system so that the data can be provided to theconsumer via regular mail (e.g., as part of a utility bill). In otherembodiments, the report/alert is communicated back to the utilitycompany 1006 so that the utility company 1006 can provide thereport/alert to the consumer 1008, 1010, and 1012.

It should be noted that terms such as “processor” and “server” may beused herein to describe devices that may be used in certain embodimentsof the present invention and should not be construed to limit thepresent invention to any particular device type or system unless thecontext otherwise requires. Thus, a system may include, withoutlimitation, a client, server, computer, appliance, or other type ofdevice. Such devices typically include one or more network interfacesfor communicating over a communication network and a processor (e.g., amicroprocessor with memory and other peripherals and/orapplication-specific hardware) configured accordingly to perform deviceand/or system functions. Communication networks generally may includepublic and/or private networks; may include local-area, wide-area,metropolitan-area, storage, and/or other types of networks; and mayemploy communication technologies including, but in no way limited to,analog technologies, digital technologies, optical technologies,wireless technologies, networking technologies, and internetworkingtechnologies.

The various components of the control program may be implementedindividually or in combination. For example, each component may beimplemented or a dedicated server or a set of servers configured in adistributed manner.

It should also be noted that devices may use communication protocols andmessages (e.g., messages created, transmitted, received, stored, and/orprocessed by the system), and such messages may be conveyed by acommunication network or medium. Unless the context otherwise requires,the present invention should not be construed as being limited to anyparticular communication message type, communication message format, orcommunication protocol. Thus, a communication message generally mayinclude, without limitation, a frame, packet, datagram, user datagram,cell, or other type of communication message. Unless the contextrequires otherwise, references to specific communication protocols areexemplary, and it should be understood that alternative embodiments may,as appropriate, employ variations of such communication protocols (e.g.,modifications or extensions of the protocol that may be made fromtime-to-time) or other protocols either known or developed in thefuture.

It should also be noted that logic flows may be described herein todemonstrate various aspects of the invention, and should not beconstrued to limit the present invention to any particular logic flow orlogic implementation. The described logic may be partitioned intodifferent logic blocks (e.g., programs, modules, interfaces, functions,or subroutines) without changing the overall results or otherwisedeparting from the true scope of the invention. Often times, logicelements may be added, modified, omitted, performed in a differentorder, or implemented using different logic constructs (e.g., logicgates, looping primitives, conditional logic, and other logicconstructs) without changing the overall results or otherwise departingfrom the true scope of the invention.

The present invention may be embodied in many different forms,including, but in no way limited to, computer program logic for use witha processor (e.g., a microprocessor, microcontroller, digital signalprocessor, or general purpose computer), programmable logic for use witha programmable logic device (e.g., a Field Programmable Gate Array(FPGA) or other programmable logic device (PLD)), discrete components,integrated circuitry (e.g., an Application Specific Integrated Circuit(ASIC)), or any other means including any combination thereof. In atypical embodiment of the present invention, predominantly all of thedescribed logic is implemented as a set of computer program instructionsthat is converted into a computer executable form, stored as such in acomputer readable medium, and executed by a microprocessor under thecontrol of an operating system.

Computer program logic implementing all or part of the functionalitypreviously described herein may be embodied in various forms, including,but in no way limited to, a source code form, a computer executableform, and various intermediate forms (e.g., forms generated by anassembler, compiler, linker, or locator). Source code may include aseries of computer program instructions implemented in any of variousprogramming languages (e.g., an object code, an assembly language, or ahigh-level language such as Fortran, C, C++, JAVA, or HTML) for use withvarious operating systems or operating environments. The source code maydefine and use various data structures and communication messages. Thesource code may be in a computer executable form (e.g., via aninterpreter), or the source code may be converted (e.g., via atranslator, assembler, or compiler) into a computer executable form.

The computer program may be fixed in any form (e.g., source code form,computer executable form, or an intermediate form) either permanently ortransitorily in a tangible storage medium, such as a semiconductormemory device (e.g., a RAM, ROM, PROM, EEPROM, or Flash-ProgrammableRAM), a magnetic memory device (e.g., a diskette or fixed disk), anoptical memory device (e.g., a CD-ROM), a PC card (e.g., PCMCIA card),or other memory device. The computer program may be fixed in any form ina signal that is transmittable to a computer using any of variouscommunication technologies, including, but in no way limited to, analogtechnologies, digital technologies, optical technologies, wirelesstechnologies, networking technologies, and internetworking technologies.The computer program may be distributed in any form as a removablestorage medium with accompanying printed or electronic documentation(e.g., shrink wrapped software), preloaded with a computer system (e.g.,on system ROM or fixed disk), or distributed from a server or electronicbulletin board over the communication system (e.g., the Internet orWorld Wide Web).

Hardware logic (including programmable logic for use with a programmablelogic device) implementing all or part of the functionality previouslydescribed herein may be designed using traditional manual methods, ormay be designed, captured, simulated, or documented electronically usingvarious tools, such as Computer Aided Design (CAD), a hardwaredescription language (e.g., VHDL or AHDL), or a PLD programming language(e.g., PALASM, ABEL, or CUPL).

Programmable logic may be fixed either permanently or transitorily in atangible storage medium, such as a semiconductor memory device (e.g., aRAM, ROM, PROM, EEPROM, or Flash-Programmable RAM), a magnetic memorydevice (e.g., a diskette or fixed disk), an optical memory device (e.g.,a CD-ROM), or other memory device. The programmable logic may be fixedin a signal that is transmittable to a computer using any of variouscommunication technologies, including, but in no way limited to, analogtechnologies, digital technologies, optical technologies, wirelesstechnologies (e.g., Bluetooth), networking technologies, andinternetworking technologies. The programmable logic may be distributedas a removable storage medium with accompanying printed or electronicdocumentation (e.g., shrink wrapped software), preloaded with a computersystem (e.g., on system ROM or fixed disk), or distributed from a serveror electronic bulletin board over the communication system (e.g., theInternet or World Wide Web). Of course, some embodiments of theinvention may be implemented as a combination of both software (e.g., acomputer program product) and hardware. Still other embodiments of theinvention are implemented as entirely hardware, or entirely software.

The embodiments of the invention described above are intended to bemerely exemplary; numerous variations and modifications will be apparentto those skilled in the art. All such variations and modifications areintended to be within the scope of the present invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method of reducing a usageor cost of a commodity by reporting to consumers of unusual usage of thecommodity, wherein the unusual usage is by a consumer during a currentbilling period, and wherein the current billing period is incomplete,the computer-implemented method comprising: retrieving a plurality ofusage-information datasets, each dataset corresponding to usage of thecommodity by a consumer, each usage-information dataset including pastusage of the commodity during at least one of a completed billing periodand an completed portion of the current billing period; establishing aplurality of report-trigger conditions for the current billing period,each report-trigger condition corresponding to each consumer and basedat least in part on the past usage in the usage-information dataset; anddetermining, for each consumer, whether an estimated usage establishedfor each consumer for a remaining portion of the current billing periodfulfills the report-trigger condition for the respective consumer and,if the estimated usage fulfills the report-trigger condition, outputtinga report to the consumer, wherein the estimated usage is determinedbased at least in part on usage for the completed portion of the currentbilling period and a forecast of the usage for the remaining portion ofthe current billing period.
 2. The computer-implemented method of claim1, wherein the forecast of the usage for the remaining portion of thecurrent billing period is based upon a trailing history of the usage bythe consumer in the completed portion of the current billing period. 3.The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein establishing theplurality of report-trigger conditions is performed prior to the currentbilling period.
 4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, whereinthe past usage, in the usage-information dataset upon which theplurality of report-trigger conditions are at least in part established,is during a period in a season that corresponds to a season of thecurrent billing period.
 5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4,wherein the plurality of report-trigger conditions comprise, for eachconsumer, the estimated usage for the remaining portion of the currentbilling period exceeding 130 percent of the past usage during acorresponding period.
 6. The computer-implemented method of claim 4,wherein the plurality of report-trigger conditions comprise, for eachconsumer, the estimated usage for the remaining portion of the currentbilling period exceeding a consumer-specified threshold for the billingperiod.
 7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, whereinoutputting the report includes at least one of: generating an electronicmessage, including at least one of an electronic mail message, a shortmessage service (SMS) message, an automated voice message, and a signalsent to an electronic device located at a location associated with theconsumer.
 8. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein theelectronic device includes a thermostat.
 9. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 1, wherein the commodity includes at least one ofelectricity, water, and gas.
 10. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 1, wherein the report-trigger condition is based, in part, on atleast one of: the usage of the commodity by the consumer and a presentcost of the commodity.
 11. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,wherein determining whether the estimated usage fulfills thereport-trigger condition is performed at a plurality of spaced-apartinstances in time during the current billing period.
 12. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein determining whether theestimated usage fulfills the report-trigger condition is performed afterhalf of the current billing period has transpired, wherein the currentbilling period is at least four week in duration.
 13. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein determining whether theestimated usage fulfills the report-trigger condition is performed aftera pre-defined time within the current billing period.
 14. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the current billingperiod has a duration based at least in part upon at least one of: anaverage of durations between three billing periods and twelve completedbilling periods, and a default period.
 15. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 2, wherein the trailing history comprises usageinformation for five to ten days of the completed portion of the currentbilling period.
 16. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, whereinthe plurality of report-trigger conditions includes, for each consumer,a data-value representing the consumer consenting to receiving thereport.
 17. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein thereport to the consumer displays the unusual usage of the commodity asindicia of at least one of high cost, high usage, high environmentalimpact, and high carbon footprint.
 18. A computer-implemented method ofreducing a usage or cost of a commodity by reporting to consumers ofunusual usage of the commodity, wherein the unusual usage is by aconsumer during a current billing period, and wherein the currentbilling period is incomplete, the computer-implemented methodcomprising: retrieving a usage-information dataset corresponding to theusage of the commodity by the consumer, the usage-information datasetincluding past usage of the commodity during at least one of a completedbilling period and a usage of the commodity during a completed portionof the billing period; retrieving a cost-rate dataset for the currentbilling period; establishing a plurality of a report-trigger conditionsfor the current billing period, each report-trigger condition based atleast in part from the past usage in the usage-information dataset andthe cost-rate dataset, determining, for each consumer, whether anestimated cost for the current billing period fulfills thereport-trigger condition for a respective consumer, and if the estimatedcost for the current billing period fulfills the report-triggercondition being fulfilled, outputting an report to the consumer, whereinthe estimated cost for the current billing period is determined from thecost-rate dataset and an estimated usage for the current billing period,the estimated usage for the current billing period being determinedbased at least in part on the usage for the completed portion of thecurrent billing period and a forecast of the usage for a remainingportion of the current billing period.
 19. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 18, wherein the forecast of the usage for the remainingportion of the current billing period is based upon a trailing historyof the current usage in the completed portion of the current billingperiod.
 20. The computer-implemented method of claim 18, wherein thecost rate dataset includes a plurality of cost values associated aplurality of time instances within the current billing period.
 21. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 18, wherein each of thereport-trigger conditions is based, in part, on the forecast usage ofthe commodity by the consumer exceeding a pre-defined cost threshold.22. A computer program product, which is stored on a machine-readablemedium, or computer data signal, embodied by an electromagnetic wave,comprising program code for carrying out a method of reducing a usage orcost of a commodity by reporting to consumers of unusual usage of thecommodity, wherein the unusual usage is by a consumer during a currentbilling period, and wherein the current billing period is incomplete,the computer program product comprising: computer code to retrieve aplurality of usage-information datasets, each dataset corresponding tousage of the commodity by a consumer, each usage-information datasetincluding past usage of the commodity during at least one of a completedbilling period and an completed portion of the current billing period;computer code to establish a plurality of report-trigger conditions forthe current billing period, each report-trigger condition correspondingto each consumer and based at least in part on the past usage in theusage-information dataset; and computer code to determine, for eachconsumer, whether an estimated usage established for each consumer for aremaining portion of the current billing period fulfills thereport-trigger condition for the respective consumer and, if theestimated usage fulfills the report-trigger condition, outputting areport to the consumer, wherein the estimated usage is determined basedat least in part on usage for the completed portion of the currentbilling period and a forecast of the usage for the remaining portion ofthe current billing period.
 23. A system comprising: a memory configuredto store usage data associated to a commodity, the usage data includes,in part, a usage-information dataset corresponding to usage of thecommodity by a plurality of consumers, the usage-information includes,in part, past usage-information of the commodity during at least one ofcompleted billing period and a current usage of the commodity during acurrent incomplete billing period; a communication port configured totransmit report data to a plurality of consumers; a control programconfigured to control the memory and communication port; retrieve theusage-information dataset for a consumer, establish a report-triggercondition for the current billing period for the consumer, thereport-trigger condition based at least in part from the past usage inthe usage-information dataset, determine, for each consumer, anestimated usage for the current billing period based at least on usagefor a completed portion of the current billing period and a forecast ofusage for a remaining portion of the current billing period; andcontinuously determine whether the estimated usage fulfills thereport-trigger condition for each respective consumer; and if theestimated usage fulfills the report-trigger condition, outputting areport to the consumer through the communication port.
 24. The system ofclaim 23, wherein the communication port is configured to interface, inpart, to at least one of a meter, a thermostat, a network, a dataexchange interface of a cellular network and a data exchange interfaceto an email server.